Midwife scarcity and rising weight problems charges straining maternity care, says report
The research, from the Royal College of Midwives (RCM), mentioned the NHS in England was wanting the equal of two,500 full-time midwives.
It mentioned whereas the NHS workforce in England rose by 14.1 p.c between December 2019 and March 2023, the variety of midwives elevated by simply 1.1 p.c (247 extra midwives).
The report argued that the influence of staffing shortages on ladies was “stark and sobering”, with Care Quality Commission inspections of maternity companies having recognized security issues immediately linked to workers shortages.
It additionally mentioned whereas the variety of births had fallen not too long ago, “the decrease is neither linear nor a reason for complacency”.
The report added: “Births can – and do – go up, but even if they do not, the complexity of maternity care has increased in recent years.”
It pointed to how ladies had been giving delivery later in life and that the care of them and their infants might be extra advanced, whereas “rising levels of obesity impact the demands placed on midwives too”.
One in 4 ladies had been overweight on the time of their booking-in appointment throughout November 2022, up from 18 p.c 5 years earlier.
Birte Harlev-Lam, govt director midwife on the RCM, mentioned: “This report lays out the significant challenges facing midwives and their colleagues and what needs to be done to turn this situation around.
“The NHS workforce plan is a begin and a chance to essentially make a distinction. It has the potential to alleviate the unimaginable pressure on midwives, maternity assist staff and their colleagues.
“The Government has promised much with the plan and we will be watching to make sure they honour those promises.
“Women and maternity workers deserve nothing lower than whole dedication from the Government to as soon as and for all finish this disaster.
“This means giving maternity services the resources needed now, and long into the future.”
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson mentioned: “The NHS is one of the safest places to give birth in the world, but we know there is more to do.
“We’ve taken steps to enhance the standard of take care of moms and infants inside the NHS, together with £165 million of extra funding per 12 months to develop the maternity workforce and enhance neonatal companies.
“The NHS recently published the first ever Long Term Workforce Plan, backed by over £2.4 billion in government funding, to deliver the biggest training expansion in NHS history to help meet the challenges of a growing and ageing population by recruiting and retaining hundreds of thousands more staff over the next 15 years.”